Agenda and minutes

With effect from 1 April 2016 Agenda and Minutes will be available
in both Welsh and English. Reports are working documents and
produced in English only in accordance with Welsh Language Standard
41 of this Council’s Final Compliance Notice from the Welsh
Language Commissioner.

The Head of Finance submitted a report (HF/99/18s to assist
Members in agreeing a list ofpotential
scrutiny topic areas for the next 12 months and possibly longer term.

Presenting the report the Scrutiny Facilitator highlighted
the following:

·In line with the Committee’s previous decision
the Local Housing Strategy item would be dealt with as an information report
following notification that there would be no significant changes to the draft
document.

·Topic Selection Form in respect of HRA
Environmental Improvement Schemes – proposed to remove this item from the work
programme following advice in relation to the scheme provided by the Head of
Housing and Economy, however following discussion the Committee agreed that the
item should be scheduled on the work programme as soon as possible.

AGREED – That, subject to
the aforementioned amendment, the work programme as outlined in report
HF/99/18s be agreed.

The Head of Finance submitted a report (HF/97/18s) to
consider the findings and recommendations of the Environmental Enforcement Task
and Finish Group that was established by the Homes and Environment Scrutiny
Committee at its meeting on 9 May 2018.

The Chair of the Task and Finish Group presented the report.

On behalf of the Committee the Chair thanked Members and
Officers involved in the task and finish group’s review for their work,
sentiments that were echoed by the Leader of the Council.

In considering the report the following matters were
highlighted in debate:

·Support for the recommendations of the task and
finish group from both Committee and non-Committee members.

·Future report required in respect of the options
for a future service model. If
necessary, this could be considered by the task and finish group.

·Future service must be reactive to the needs of
local area, rather than focussing on the factors highlighted in the Keep Wales
Tidy report.Litter and dog fouling
remained an issue in many rural areas.

·The comments of the Lead Member that as a result
of significant reshaping across the department there was limited capacity to
develop a new service.Consideration
must also be given to how such a service would be funded given the Council’s
budget constraints.The Lead Member
further reported that the development of a regional approach would take
approximately 18 months to progress.

·How to manage the gap in enforcement provision
should the contract with Kingdom be terminated prior to the establishment of a
new service.The Service Manager –
Environment informed the Committee that the existing enforcement team were
still authorised to deal with litter and dog fouling however the team’s current
focus remained car parking enforcement.Expanding to include litter and dog fouling enforcement could present
budget pressures and affect existing enforcement levels.

·Noted that the Audit Committee would review the
work and recommendations of Scrutiny to consider if these provided adequate
mitigation to their original concerns regarding risks to the Council, posed by
this contract.

AGREED –

(i)That
the Committee agree the report and recommendations of the Environmental
Enforcement Task and Finish Group.

(ii)That the Committee recommends
that the current agreement for Environmental Enforcement with Kingdom be
terminated in accordance with the 3 months notice period specified within.

(iii)That the future
provision of Environmental Enforcement in Wrexham be considered on a partnership,
sub-regional or regional basis with other North Wales Councils.

(iv)That the Homes and
Environment Scrutiny Committee consider a future report outlining how this
service can be provided on the above basis.

The Lead Member for Place – Environment and Transport
submitted a report (HEP/74/18s) to update Members on the management of weeds
through herbicide application on highways and open spaces in the County
Borough, arising from consideration of this issue by members of the Homes and
Environment Scrutiny Committee in February 2018.

The Parks, Countryside and PROW Manager presented the report
referring to the reduction in use of herbicide since last year due to a targeted
approach to spraying, Welsh Government guidance of August 2018 which had been
shared with the relevant departmental Heads to ensure consistency of approach,
the cost of alternative approaches to weed control and the need to balance any
future reduction in spraying with public perception regarding weed growth.

The Lead Member confirmed that the Council was compliant
with Welsh Government and HSE requirements and, referring to the training
provided to relevant staff, was confident that the product being used was being
applied correctly.

In discussing the report the following points were made:

·Welcomed that the Committee’s previous
recommendations had been taken on board.Acknowledgement that the use of herbicide had reduced.

·The need to closely monitor any developments in
respect of the use of herbicide.Suggested that an information report be issued in 6 months time.

·Noted that even organic herbicides had an
element of toxicity.

·Clarification sought on how weed control
considerations were aligned to theWellbeing of Future Generations Act.The officer undertook to liaise with the relevant officer in this regard
and to provide any feedback in the information report to Members.

·All relevant Members had responsibility as
school governors to question that the contractors used in schools met the
Council’s standards.

AGREED –

(i)That the Committee supports the present
system for using the minimum amount of herbicide to control weeds on the public
highway and open spaces in the County Borough.

(ii)That
the Committee monitors best practice and the herbicide-free approach to weed
management in other Councils and learns from their experiences.

(iii)That
an information report on development regarding glyphosate and its usage be
submitted in 6 months.

(iv)That
the Committee consider an update report on the Councils use of glyphosates and
related developments at their meeting in September 2019.

(v)That
clarification be sought from the Welsh Government that their recently issued
guidance with regard to the use of glyphosate had regard to the requirements of
the Future Generations Act.

(vi)That
assurance be sought that guidance issued to Head of Departments regarding the
proper use of glyphosates had been followed.